Williams & Co., the independent, trade-only plumbing and heating wholesaler, has been identified in a report by London’s Stock Exchange as making an extraordinary contribution to economic growth and employment.

Following an early review, the government has agreed to extend the Trade Credit Enterprise Finance Guarantee pilot scheme, which the Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) has made available to its members.

Phil Barnard, from Chandlers Building Supplies, is to chair a University of Brighton Water Efficiency in Building Network masterclass, which will take place at the BRE Trust in Watford on Wednesday 5 February.

Knauf Insulation, in partnership with CRASH - the construction and property industry’s charity for homeless people - has donated its Rocksilk Universal Slab insulation to a project undertaken by performing arts charity, Cardboard Citizens.

Shadow Housing Minister Emma Reynolds has called for "an army of small builders" to help deliver the number of new homes needed to address the housing crisis, in a speech to the National House Building Council.

The latest forecast from the Construction Products Association (CPA) puts private housebuilding, infrastructure work and commercial activity at the centre of the industry's recovery over the next four years, despite Office for National Statistics data which shows output declined in November 2013.

Plumbfix is launching its first four trade counters in Northern Ireland. Situated in Screwfix stores, the Plumbfix counters will open in Ballymena, Belfast and Newtownabbey on 13 January, 2014, and in Bangor on 27 January.

Though traditionally a ‘hands on’ sector, Screwfix is predicting a ‘social revolution’ within the trade as almost half (48%) of tradesmen reveal they are winning new business through social media channels.

Anyone within the plumbing, heating or building trade is invited to learn more about installing heat pumps, as Danfoss is running a special ‘introduction to heat pumps’ (HP1) course for those who are new to renewable energy.

Saint-Gobain Weber’s Loyalty Rewards campaign has won first place in the Best Digital Campaign category at this year’s Construction Marketing Awards. The judges’ feedback acknowledged the success of the loyalty scheme in achieving high levels of customer engagement and product sales.